Frequent Fliers Can Learn to Live With Jet Lag

Coping with jet lag is quite simple for people who only fly once in a while, possibly just a couple of times a year on holiday or for the occasional business trip, but for aircrews and those of us who fly regularly, jet lag frequently brings in its wake a number of health problems that can become virtually permanent.

Long-haul fliers will be familiar with the interference with their sleep pattern and the insomnia which can be produced by a long trip, in addition to such things as changes in mood, irritability, stomach problems and difficulty in processing information. But, for very frequent fliers these usually transient symptoms become a part of daily life and are regularly joined by menstrual cycle problems for women and even by short-term psychiatric difficulties for some individuals.

The chief factors which influence the degree of jet lag which you experience, aside from the frequency of travel, are the distances involved, the direction in which you travel and how old you are.

If you are regularly traveling across just one or two time zones then any affects are likely to be extremely mild. But, as soon as you start crossing more than three time zones, and particularly when you get up to frequently traveling over six or more time zones, symptoms start to markedly increase.

Jet lag symptoms are also much more obvious if you travel east and tend to affect you less if you fly west. For instance, if you are traveling from London to Singapore on vacation you will experience more jet lag when you arrive in Singapore at the start of your holiday than you will in London when you get home.

In general when traveling east you can expect that jet lag will last for a few days and a good guide is roughly two thirds of the number of time zones traveled across. For instance, if you travel across six time zones you might expect jet lag to affect you for up to four days. When flying west jet lag could be expected to last for about half this time.

Age is also a significant consideration when it comes to jet lag and, as you get older, you will discover that you are increasingly affected by jet lag.

There is no such thing as a true jet lag cure but there is a great deal that you can do to assist in reducing the symptoms of jet lag.

Visit Help-Me-To-Sleep.com for the latest information on jet lag including details of jet lag treatment.